This oven baked chicken Kiev includes chicken breasts stuffed with a cheesy garlic herb butter and topped with crunchy breadcrumbs. No one will be sad to see this show up for dinner.
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Happy New Year, my friends!
I’m starting things off right with 2022 by sharing this delicious oven baked stuffed chicken breast recipe with you. It’s been a huge crowd favorite around here for many years and I’m excited to share it with you today.
What is chicken Kiev?
Although we’ve been making this dish for years I wasn’t sure really where it originated from. Thanks to a quick google search I found out the name is French, but the dish actually comes from Russia. I can’t quite wrap my mind around how that could have happened, but we’re going with it.
Chicken Kiev is a dish consisting of a chicken breast stuffed with garlic butter, coated with breadcrumbs, and then fried or baked.
Since I like to add my own twist, today’s version of oven baked chicken kiev includes the addition of grated feta or Grueyere cheese in the stuffing which brings a delicious flavor. It’s easy to leave out the cheese too if you prefer the traditional (or don’t have any), which we do all the time.
How to make chicken Kiev
First, make the garlic-herb filling.
To do this you will need:
- Softened butter (room temp butter, rather than microwaved, is best – so plan ahead if possible)
- Fresh chives or parsley (I haven’t tried it but I bet this would be delicious with fresh basil too)
- clove of fresh garlic, minced (I like to use this handy dandy mincer thingy, aff. link)–I don’t recommend refrigerated minced garlic as it tends to have a bitter flavor.
- Feta or Gruyère cheese (as I mentioned above this is optional, but soooo good!)
Mix this together, form it into a rectangle (I like to use the butter wrapper for easy molding) and stick it in the freezer for 30 minutes while you are preparing the chicken.
Now the chicken prep (get ready for the fun part).
Grab a mallet and get ready to flatten chicken breasts. The easiest way I’ve found to do this is to stick the chicken breasts (one at a time) in a gallon bag (bread bag or freezer bag). Then pound the chicken in the bag with the mallet until it’s evenly about 1/4-inch thick.
Take out all your frustrations on those chicken breasts, my friends. This is great therapy.
Then season both sides of the chicken with salt and pepper and set aside until your butter is done.
The breadcrumb mixture.
Combine the following in a shallow dish:
- Panko breadcrumbs (cornflakes or gluten free panko breadcrumbs work well here too)
- chopped fresh parsley
- paprika
- melted butter
That’s all for that step–it’s easy peasy.
Time to stuff chicken breasts and finish them off.
Pull out the chilled butter-herb block and cut it into 4 rectangles.
Then place one rectangle in the center of a flattened, seasoned chicken breast. Roll up starting on the long end and tuck in the short ends as you roll. Secured the stuffed chicken with toothpicks and do the same for the others.
Place the chicken in a greased 9×13-inch pan and pour on some buttermilk.
Then sprinkle the breadcrumb mixture on the very top.
Bake in a preheat 375 degree F oven for 50 to 60 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F (I use this meat thermometer, aff. link).
And that’s it, my friends.
Despite it’s fancy French name and Russian origins, this dish is not hard to make. And it’s super delicious to eat. We like to serve it with some sort of potatoes (e.g. garlic mashed savory sweet potatoes or cheesy funeral potatoes) and some veggies on the side. Steamed broccoli or asparagus is always a delicious choice.
Time to dig in.
Oven Chicken Kiev {Stuffed Chicken Breasts}
This oven baked chicken Kiev includes chicken breasts stuffed with a cheesy garlic herb butter and topped with crunchy breadcrumbs. No one will be sad to see this show up for dinner.
Ingredients
For Butter Herb Filling:
- 1/4 cup butter, room temperature
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives or parsley
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1/3 cup feta or grated Gruyère cheese, optional (see note)
For Chicken:
- 4 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 2 pounds)
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs (see note)
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/4 cup butter, melted
- 1/4 cup buttermilk
Instructions
-
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a 9×13-inch baking pan with cooking spray and set aside.
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In a small bowl, mix together softened butter, chives or parsley, minced garlic, and shredded cheese (if using). Form butter into a rectangle (about 3" x 2") and put in the freezer while preparing the chicken.
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One at a time, place each chicken breast in a gallon bread or freezer bag and use a mallet to pound chicken until it is evenly about 1/4" thick. Remove and season both sides with salt and pepper, to taste.
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In a shallow dish add breadcrumbs, chopped parsley, paprika and melted butter and stir until evenly combined.
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Remove butter from freezer and cut into 4 rectangular pieces. Place one piece in the center of each chicken breast and starting at a long side, tightly roll up the chicken, tucking in the short sides as you roll. Secure with toothpicks. Place in the prepared baking pan. Repeat with remaining chicken breasts.
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Pour buttermilk evenly over top of the chicken and sprinkle breadcrumb mixture evenly on top.
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Bake uncovered in preheated 375 degree oven for 50-60 minutes or until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165 degrees F. Tent loosely with foil about halfway through the cooking time if the outside of the chicken starts to get too dark. Remove toothpicks and serve.
Recipe Notes
1. This recipe says it serves 4 but the pieces are so large, we often cut them in half after it is cooked to serve 8.
2. Traditional Chicken Kiev doesn’t use the cheese filling, but we really like the flavor it adds. We’ve used feta cheese, goat cheese, grated gruyere. Feel free to try it with any strong-flavored cheese you like.
3. You can substitute cornflakes or gluten free panko bread crumbs for the bread crumbs.
Recipe Source: Heather @ The Cook’s Treat
All images and text ©The Cook’s Treat
Disclaimer: post contains affiliate links for items on Amazon.
Nice recipe. Although, Kiev, or rather Kyiv is not in Russia, it is the capital city of Ukraine. Therefore this recipe is clearly not russian but definitely Ukrainian. Please change this as you do look ignorant especially in light of the past 18 months russian war against Ukraine. Thank you!
Hey Orest thanks for the clarification! I am definitely pretty ignorant as far as the origins of this recipe go. Sounds like Google may have been as well. Lol